H.R. 7934

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7934 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7934

To amend chapter 3 of title 5, United States Code, to require the 
publication of settlement agreements, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

March 16, 2026

Mr. Palmer (for himself and Mr. Mfume) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To amend chapter 3 of title 5, United States Code, to require the 
publication of settlement agreements, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Settlement Agreement Information 
Database Act of 2026''.

SEC. 2. INFORMATION REGARDING SETTLEMENT AGREEMENTS ENTERED INTO BY 
AGENCIES.

(a) Requirements for Settlement Agreements.--Subchapter I of 
chapter 3 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following:
``Sec. 307. Information regarding settlement agreements
``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Agency.--The term `agency' has the meaning given the 
term in section 3502 of title 44.
``(2) Covered settlement agreement.--
``(A) In general.--The term `covered settlement 
agreement' means a settlement agreement or deferred 
prosecution agreement that meets 1 or more of the 
following requirements:
``(i) Requires not less than $10,000,000 in 
total explicitly obligated payments of a 
settling party on the date on which the 
settlement agreement is executed.
``(ii) Involves the appointment of a 
special master or monitor.
``(iii) Involves a party that is a State, 
metropolitan city, local government, county, or 
other unit of government that is not the 
Federal Government.
``(iv) Is designated as a covered 
settlement agreement by the Director as a 
result of meeting additional criteria 
determined by the Director as described in 
subsection (b)(2)(C).
``(B) Exclusions.--The term `covered settlement 
agreement' does not include a settlement agreement that 
relates to any of the following:
``(i) The United States Trustee Program.
``(ii) A Federal employee personnel action, 
including an action before the Equal Employment 
Opportunity Commission, the Office of Special 
Counsel, or the Merit Systems Protection Board, 
or any other internal personnel-related matter.
``(iii) A non-prosecution agreement or plea 
bargain.
``(iv) The Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
``(v) Any matter that may be brought as an 
action pursuant to chapter 46 of title 18.
``(3) Director.--The term `Director' means the Director of 
the Office of Management and Budget.
``(4) Local government.--The term `local government' has 
the meaning given the term in section 6501 of title 31.
``(5) Originating agency.--The term `originating agency' 
means an agency on behalf of which or at the request of which 
another agency executes a settlement agreement.
``(6) Settlement agreement.--The term `settlement 
agreement' means an agreement (including a consent decree) 
that--
``(A) is entered into by an agency; and
``(B) resolves an alleged violation of Federal, 
civil, or criminal law.
``(7) State.--The term `State' means each of the several 
States, the District of Columbia, each territory or possession 
of the United States, and each federally recognized Indian 
Tribe.
``(b) Covered Settlement Agreement Information Database.--
``(1) Agency requirement.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than 2 years after the 
date of the enactment of this section, the head of each 
agency that has entered into a covered settlement 
agreement shall establish and maintain a public online 
database that, subject to subparagraph (B), contains 
the following information and documents to the extent 
practicable:
``(i) A list (in a categorized and 
searchable format) that includes each covered 
settlement agreement entered into by such 
agency and publishes with respect to each such 
covered settlement agreement the following:
``(I) Whether the covered 
settlement agreement resolves a civil 
or criminal claim or both.
``(II) The date on which each party 
settling a claim under the covered 
settlement agreement executes such 
covered settlement agreement.
``(III) Any specific statutory 
provision alleged to have been 
violated, as may be set forth in any 
corresponding public letter or 
complaint.
``(IV) Any expressly denominated 
amount of fees and other expenses of 
attorneys provided by or to the United 
States.
``(V) The amount, if any, each 
party settling a claim under the 
covered settlement agreement is 
explicitly obligated to pay as set 
forth in such covered settlement 
agreement.
``(VI) The amount, if any, each 
party settling a claim under the 
covered settlement agreement is 
obligated to pay as expressly specified 
under the covered settlement agreement 
as a civil or criminal penalty or fine.
``(VII) Any payment made under the 
covered settlement agreement, including 
the amount of any payment made to or by 
the Federal Government.
``(VIII) The projected duration of 
the covered settlement agreement, if 
available.
``(IX) A list of any State, local 
government, county, or any other unit 
of government that is directly 
identified by the substantive terms of 
the covered settlement agreement.
``(ii) A copy of each such covered 
settlement agreement.
``(B) Exemptions.--The requirement to publish a 
copy of or any other information with respect to a 
covered settlement agreement pursuant to subparagraph 
(A) does not apply to the extent such copy (or portion 
thereof) or information--
``(i) is subject to a confidentiality 
provision or court order that prohibits the 
disclosure of such copy (or portion) or 
information; or
``(ii) would be subject to withholding from 
public disclosure under section 552.
``(2) Guidance.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
the enactment of this section, the Director, in coordination 
with the Attorney General, shall issue, and periodically update 
as necessary thereafter, guidance for the head of each agency 
to implement paragraph (1) that includes the following:
``(A) Specific dates by which such head shall 
publish information necessary to maintain the database 
of such agency pursuant to paragraph (1)(A), which 
shall be not less frequently than annually.
``(B) Data standards, including common data 
elements and a common, nonproprietary, searchable, 
machine-readable, and platform-independent format, for 
the publication of information pursuant to paragraph 
(1)(A).
``(C) Additional criteria that such head shall use 
to determine if a settlement agreement is likely to 
require significant compliance costs such that such 
head shall designate such settlement agreement as a 
covered settlement agreement.
``(D) A requirement that such head shall use a 
uniform resource locator for the establishment of the 
database of such agency pursuant to paragraph (1)(A) 
that--
``(i) is--
``(I) in a consistent format across 
agencies; and
``(II) descriptive, memorable, and 
pronounceable; and
``(ii) may be `agencyname.gov/settlements'.
``(E) A process that such head may use to request 
certification from the Director that a database of such 
agency that exists on the date of the enactment of this 
section complies with this subsection.
``(F) A process for requiring the head of not less 
than 1 agency to publish a covered settlement agreement 
on a database required by paragraph (1)(A) if--
``(i) multiple agencies are a party to such 
covered settlement agreement; or
``(ii) such head enters into an additional 
covered settlement agreement at the request of 
or on behalf of an originating agency.
``(3) Non-disclosure transparency.--
``(A) Report on non-disclosure.--Not later than 2 
years after the date of the enactment of this section, 
and not less frequently than annually thereafter, the 
head of each agency that establishes and maintains a 
database pursuant to paragraph (1)(A) shall submit to 
Congress and make publicly available on the website of 
such agency a report on covered settlement agreements 
that the agency does not publicly disclose in the 
database for the covered settlements published in the 
previous year.
``(B) Report contents.--The report described in 
subparagraph (A) shall include--
``(i) the number of covered settlement 
agreements that were fully exempted under 
paragraph (1)(B);
``(ii) for each covered settlement 
agreement fully exempted under paragraph 
(1)(B), the specific exemption under that 
paragraph that applies; and
``(iii) in the case of a full exemption 
under paragraph (1)(B)(ii), the specific 
exemptions under section 552 that apply.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for subchapter I of 
chapter 3 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following new item:

``307. Information regarding settlement agreements.''.
(c) Rule of Construction.--
(1) In general.--Any information published on a database 
established and maintained pursuant to section 307(b)(1)(A) of 
title 5, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), shall 
not affect the terms of a settlement agreement or the 
interpretation or application of the settlement agreement.
(2) Legal rights.--The inclusion or omission of information 
or documents in a database established and maintained pursuant 
to section 307(b)(1)(A) of title 5, United States Code, as 
added by subsection (a), shall not be construed as creating any 
legal right or opportunity for judicial review.
(3) Freedom of information act.--Nothing in this Act, or 
the amendments made by this Act, shall be construed to require 
the disclosure of information or records that the head of an 
agency may withhold from public disclosure under section 552 of 
title 5, United States Code.
(4) Classified information.--Nothing in this Act, or the 
amendments made by this Act, shall be construed to require the 
disclosure of classified information.
(d) Applicability.--This Act, and the amendments made by this Act, 
shall apply with respect to--
(1) any covered settlement agreement (as defined in section 
307(a) of title 5, United States Code, as added by subsection 
(a)) entered into on or after the date of the enactment of this 
Act; and
(2) to the extent practicable, any such covered settlement 
agreement that--
(A) was entered into on or after January 1, 2015; 
and
(B) remains in effect on or after the date of the 
enactment of this Act.
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